Authorities arrest Ohio man; search continues for his wife
CINCINNATI (AP) — Investigators continued combing the suburban Cincinnati home of a missing woman Wednesday, after spending hours at a landfill and along the Ohio River seeking clues.
Meanwhile the husband of Kristan Strutz was in jail on charges of obstructing official business and tampering with evidence. An assistant prosecutor told a judge at a Monday hearing for John P. Strutz that he concealed human remains.
Authorities have not provided any details about the case of the missing 28-year-old woman.
Strutz, 30, a welder, reported her missing on Saturday and police arrested him the next day. He was being held on a $1 million bond.
His attorney, Simon Groner, said Wednesday that his client was cooperative with police at first.
“He told me that he didn’t discontinue that until he realized that they either suspected him or were accusing him of killing his wife,” Groner said. “That’s when he asked for an attorney. Until then, he thought they were all on the same side — to look for his wife.”
Groner said he has no information about the allegation that his client concealed human remains. He said Strutz told him that when he woke up Saturday, he thought his wife might have gone to a relative’s home.
Police said John Strutz told them he last saw his wife about 10 p.m. Friday night.
Strutz was laid off from his job a few months ago. The couple have three children, ages 3, 5 and 6. They were being cared for by family members, according to Larry Emley of Cincinnati, who was speaking on behalf of Kristan Strutz’s family. Emley said her family remained “cautiously optimistic” that she would be found alive.
Delhi Township police completed searches at the landfill and riverbank, but referred all calls seeking comment to the Hamilton County prosecutor’s office. Prosecutor Joe Deters said the office would have no comment.
“The best way to deliver justice for Kristan at this time is for us to keep our mouths shut, and that is what we intend to do,” Deters said in a statement Wednesday.
This week, people have been leaving flowers and teddy bears outside the Strutz home as a memorial to the missing woman.